Alarm-clock.



W. E. PORTER.

ALARM CLOCK.

APPLICATION FILE D AUG.2I, 191s.

Patented se ms, 1917.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILSON E. PORTER, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO NEW HAVEN CLOCK 00., OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION.

ALARM-CLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 18, 191 7.

Application filed August 21, 1915. Serial No. 46,606.

1 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WVILsON E.. PORTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Alarm- (llocks; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the characters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this application, and represent, in-

Figure 1 a view in front elevation of an alarm clock constructed in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2 a detached view in front elevation of the clock-rnovement with the dial and hands removed.

Fig. 3 a broken edge view thereof with the dial in section.

Fig. 4 adetached view in front elevation of the A. M. and P. M. dial, the star-wheel by means of which it is driven being shown by broken lines.

One of the difliculties connected with the use of an alarm clock as commonly constructed, is, that the user has had no way of determining at any given time whether the alarm-mechanism is, so to speak, in the first twelve-hour phase or in the second twelvehour phase of the twenty-four hour alarm interval, with respect to the goingofl' of, or sounding of. the alarm. To make sure that the alarm-mechanism is properly set, as well as to set or to reset the alarm, the user of the clock is now obliged to turn the hands of the clock until the alarm goes off, to show him its phase of operation, or, as the case may be, to give him a starting point, from which to set or reset the alarm. Without this precaution of turning the hands around to test out the running phase of the alarm-mechanisan, the alarm may go 01f in the wrong phase, as, for instance, at 5.30 P. M. instead of 5.30 A. M.

The object of my present invention is to provide an alarm clock with means for showing its user whether or not he can depend upon it to go off as set, in the A. M. or in the P. M.

Vith these ends in view, my invention consists in an alarm clock having an A. M. and P. M. dial driven by the time-mechanism of the clock and arranged to have its A. M. and P. M. marks alternately displayed in succession through .an opening in the time-dial of the clock, the driving mechanism of the said A. M. and P. M. dial being adapted to permit it to be reversed when the hands of the clock are turned back in setting the clock. My invention further consists in an alarm clock having certain details of construction and combinations of parts as will be hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In carrying out my invention as herein shown, I employ an A. M. and P. M. dial 2 located directly back of the time-dial 3 below the center thereof and furnished upon its outer face with a circular series of alternating round red and black spots 4 and 5 which might, of course, be replaced by any other arbitrarily chosen markings to represent the conventional A. M. and P. M. divisions of the day. It may be assumed that the red spots 4 indicate the hours from 12 midnight to 12 noon, and that the black spots 5 represent the hours from 12 noon to 12 midnight. A sight-opening 6 in the timedial 3, is arranged in position to expose the spots 4 and 5 successively as the said A. M. and P. M. dial 2 is moved step-by-step at twelve hour intervals, by the time-mechanism of the clock. For this purpose the dial 2 is furnished with a hub 7 turning upon a stud 8 in the front movement-plate 9, this hub being furnished with a star wheel 11 the number of points of which correspond to the total number of spots or other markings upon the outer face of the dial 2. The teeth of the said wheel 11 are engaged once in 12 hours by a. finger 1O fixed upon the socket 530 of the socket or hour wheel 12 which makes one complete rotation once in 12 hours, in the ordinary manner. A spring 13 arranged to engage with the teeth of the star wheel 11, is provided for holding the same against turning in the 12 hour inter vals which elapse between its actuation/s by the finger 10. Under the construction described, the dial 2 is rotated once in 12 hours so as to alternately expose its A. M. and P. M. markings 4 and 5 through the sightopening 6 in the time dial 3. The said Inarkings while they do not suffice for indicating the hour, always indicate the A. M. or P. M. divisions of the day in which the clock rs running with respect to actual time. A glance, therefore, at the dial 2 will indi cate to the user of the clock whethc' the alarm mechanisn'i thereot' whatever its character may be, is running in its A. M. or P. M. phase, this r sulting from the fact that the alaI'm-mechanism is also controlled in its operation by the time-mechanism as well as the dial 2.

As herein shown the time dial. 3 has iniposed upon it above its center an alarm-set dial it having two sets of figures each running from 1 to 12 and dividing it into the A. M. and P. M. divisions ot'the day, these divisions being also indicated by the letters A. M. and P. M. arranged opposite each other on a horizontal line. The said dial l l is swept by an alarm-setting pointer 15 mounted upon the projecting forward end of an alarm-setting stall 16 the rear end oi? which projects in the usual manner through the back of the clock where it is furnished with a finger-button, which is not shown. The said statl' 1G is furnished as usual with a collar 17 having a finger 18 co-acting with the edge of the alarm-cam 19 mounted upon the alarm-cam wheel 20 which turns loosely upon and also slides upon the staff 16. A spring 21 engages with a hub 22 of the wheel 20 and exerts a constant effort to force the edge of the cam against the finger 18 ot' the collar 1'7. The alarm-cam wheel 20 is constantly driven by meshing into av dialpinion 23 carried by a dial-wheel 9st which in turn. meshes into a cannon pinion. on the center-arbor 26 carrying the minute hand 27, the hour hand 28 being mounted. as usual upon the socket 550.

It will be seen from the foregoing descrip tion, that as the starovheel 9 is in train. so to speak with the timeunechanism ol the clock, and therefore connected with the minute hand 97 and hour h and .98, it will be operated synchronously with the said hands.

In the use of my improved alarm clock. the user has only to glance at the sight opening 6 and read thcrethrough the indication upon the A. M. and P. M. dial which immediately tells him whether the alarm mechanism is running in its A. M. or P. M. phase. It the marking so exposed through the sight-opening 6. does not accord with the then time. he will be atvised that the running phase of the alarm mechanism not synchronous with the time of day, and that when the alarm. goes off it will go off in the wrong division of the day, 2'. 6., opposite to that indicated by the alarnrsetting pointer. To get out of this ditliculty, he must now turn the center arbor ll by the button (not shown) at its rear end in the ordinary manner until the minute and hour hand pointers 27 and 28 have been put ahead 12 hours, and thus brought back to their positions of indicating the then correct time.

this turning of the arbor l]. the and P. .y'l dial .2 will make one step move-- 12' out. and thus he brought into synchronism h the then time of day. It may be that instead of turning the hands 27 and 28 forward through twelve hours, it may be more convenient to turn them back for a shorter eriod which under my construction may he done without dcranging the mechanism, since the star wheel 9 provides tor turning the dial in either direct on.

I claim 1. In a rea r wind and rear set alarm-clock, the combination with the time and alarm mechanisms thereof. ot' a time-dial furr shed with a sight-opening. a stationary A. hi. and P. M. alarm-setting dial imposed upon the said timc-dial and having two sets of figures running from '1 to 12, an alarmsetting pointer arranged to sweep over the said alarm-setting dial, means for manually operating the said pointer from the back of the clock, a rotary A. M. and P. M. dial located behind the said time-dial and furnished with alternating A. M. and P. M. markings which are successively exposed through the said sight-opcning and step-bystep actuating means connecting the said A. M. and P. M. dial with the hour-hand socket of the said time-mechanisin. whereby the said dial is moved at 12 hour intervals, the said means being adapted to permit the said dial to rotate in either direction. whereby the clock may be set by turning its hour and minute hands in either direction without deranging the r tary A. hi. and P. M. dial with reference to the tin'ic-mecha-nism.

ln 5 rear wind and rear set alarm-clock, the cinnbination with the time and alarm mechanisms thereof. of a timedial furnished with a sight-opening located directly below its center, a. stationary M. and P. M. alarm-setting dial located directly above the center of the said time-dial in line with the said s ght-opening and having two sets of figures running from 1 to 12. in. alarmsctting pointer for the said alarm-setting dial. means operable from the back of the clock for manually setting the said pointer. a. rotary A. M. and P. M. dial furnished with alternating A. M. and P. M. markings and located behind the time-dial in position to have its markings successively exposed through the said sight-opening, and stop-bystep actuating means, whereby the said dial operated at 12 hour intervals by the hourhand socket of the time-mechanism, the said means being adapted to permit the said rotary dial to be rotated in either direction to prevent it from being deranged with reference to the time-mechanism.

\VILSON E. PORTER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. 0. 

